1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to surfactant compositions and, more particularly, to surfactant compositions for use in formulating detergent products.
2. Description of the Background
Ether sulfates, most generally alkyl polyalkylene ether sulfates, i.e. sulfates of alkoxylated non-aromatic alcohols, are widely used surfactants and find particular utility in the preparation of detergents which are used, for example, in liquid cleaning agents, foam baths, shampoos, hand soaps, etc. In obtaining the ether sulfates, the nonaromatic alcohols, which generally range from 8 to 24 carbon atoms, particular 8 to 18 carbon atoms, are first alkoxylated with lower alkylene oxides, especially with ethylene oxide and/or propylene oxide, subsequently sulfated and then converted into the respective water-soluble salts.
It is known that aqueous solutions having a relatively low content of such ether sulfates, for example, containing about 10% by weight of the ether sulfate, exhibit the special property of being thickened or viscosified by the addition of neutral salts, such as NaCl or Na.sub.2 SO.sub.4. This rheological property of ether sulfates is taken advantage of in formulating detergent products, such as the types mentioned above.
It is also known that non-ionic surfactants of the alkoxylated alcohol type exhibit different properties depending on the alkoxylation species present. For example, certain alkoxylation species provide much greater activity than others. As disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,754,075 and 4,775,653, a narrow distribution of the alkoxylation species is more desirable in many surfactant applications. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,210,764; 4,223,164; 4,239,917; 4,254,287; 4,302,613 and 4,306,093 all disclose alkoxylates having a narrow molecular weight distribution and which exhibit better detergency than prior art products having a broader distribution. Such alkoxylates are commonly referred to as "peaked".